Birmanie - Vers un développement du tourisme

A tourist couple seen in People’s Square and Park (Photo-Kaung Thant)

A caravan that arrived in Myanmar on February 22 thourgh the India-Myanmar border point Moreh-Tamu has left the country on March 10.

Because of the country’s transition into democracy system, international interests on the country have been rising and the country sits the interesting tour destinations lists for the international tourists.

The touring group has started their itinerary from Germany by cars under the title of Caravan Group’s Tour around the world arranged by the Germany-based Seas Bridge Motor Home Co., Ltd.

Fifty-four international tourists from Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Netherlands, Britain and Iran contained in the tour group, amongst the majority are Germans.

“European people have tried to tour in Myanmar driving their own cars. But it didn’t happen. Now I’m glad to enter Myanmar by this way,” a German tourist Mr. Jorn Schlag told the Eleven Media Group at People’s Square and Park in Yangon on March 5.

He said that hospitable Myanmar people and full of “beautiful and wonderful” sceneries attracted him in his very first trip to Myanmar. Mr. Schlag hopes the next visit.

The group has travelled around the country by driving 29 caravan cars themselves, holding the temporary licences permitted by Road Transport Administration Department, Myanmar.

The tour group visited Bagan, Mandalay and surroundings of the middle Myanmar and Shan State in its earlier trip time. Then, the capital Nay Pyi Taw and Yangon were the another itinerary of the tour group. Leaving Yangon on March 7, their last trips were Mawlamyine and Hpa-an from which ending the visiting Myanmar by passing through the Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge on March 10.

The Iranian Ali Dehdar said “this is my first time to Myanmar; I’ve been interested in visiting Myanmar. I didn’t have an idea what Myanmar people are and what do they look like. Now I’m really fond of Myanmar people and their country after travelling for ten days.”

The itineraries have finished painting the town red around Turkey, Armenian, Iraq, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan. The caravan group will visit Thai, Laos, China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia and Indonesia by means of passing borderlines in both water ways and road ways.

Source birmane 11

Tourist’s arrivals National Museum has been steadily increasing over this past year, Director of National Museum Thaung Win said.

The tour agencies invite to visit to the National Museum as second priority in their tour and then the foreigners also wanted to know about Myanmar’s historical background. Due to the facts, the numbers of tourist visiting have increased in this year.

“At the present, the number of tourist arrivals is increasing. They can study literature, culture and background history of Myanmar’s successive eras at the museum by taking about two hours. Moreover, the historical artifacts are gradually increasing. And then, international ceremonies can be held in the museum.

But, we don’t say exactly because the plans are being arranged,” Director Thaung Win added.

A total of 300 tourists are visiting daily to the National Museum. Most of them are Europe, South East Asia, South Africa and United States of America.
The Buddha images, ancient artifacts, ornaments, works of art, inscriptions and historic memorabilia, related to history, culture and civilization of Myanmar people are on display at the museum.

The museum’s fee is US$ 5 for a tourist, K 500 for local visitors, K 250 for monk and nun and the children are free.

The National Museum (Yangon) was first opened in June, 1952 at the Jubilee Hall Building on Shwedagon Pagoda Road, Yangon. The museum was moved to a larger location at 24/26 Pansodan Street in 1970. The new five story National Museum has been opened to public since 18 September 1996.

The present National Museum is a five-storey building constructed for the purpose in spacious and specially landscaped grounds. Priceless ancient artifacts, works of art and historic memorabilia are on display in 14 halls on four - storey. Three halls on the ground floor hold exhibits on the evolution the Myanmar script and alphabet, the Lion Throne Room and Ratanapon Period pieces.

Source birmane 11


http://www.myanmars.net/myanmar-travel/myanmar-yangon/national-museum.htm

http://www.myanmars.net/myanmar-culture/national-museum.htm

An independent tourist police force has been formed and its officers will begin patrolling tourist areas next month, according to the Myanmar Tourist Guide Association.

"Training courses on protecting and supporting the tourist industry began two months ago for this [tourist police] force,” said association spokesperson Tun Myat. He said police officers with bachelors degrees had been selected for the force.

The 140 officers will be assigned to tourist sites in Yangon, Mandalay, Bagan, Shan State and the administrative capital Nay Pyi Taw, he said.

Tun Myint Oo, a deputy director from the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism, said he had not been briefed on the force but officials from his ministry had participated in the training courses.

Myanmar launched a tourist police force in 1996, but it was not independent from other police forces. The new one includes officers from the first force, Tun Myat said.

He said that the rapid growth of the tourist industry had led to a shortage of hotel rooms and guides and a rise in illegal businesses. Unprofessional guides had entered the business and tourist police were necessary to control them, Tun Myat said.

“Our association welcomes the tourist police force,” he said.

Source birmane 11

Tourists arriving in Shan State (South) in February (Photo-Sai Aung Myat-Taunggyi/EMG)

The number of foreign tourists visiting Shan State rose by more than 40 percent in January and February of this year compared to the same period last year, according to figures from the main gateway to the state, Heho Airport.

Airport figures show about 16,400 foreign tourists arriving in the state in January compared to about 11,400 in January 2012. The figures show about 14,400 foreign tourists arriving in February compared to about 9,200 in February 2012.

Officials from the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism said March was the peak month.

The state’s cool weather is also a draw for domestic tourists, residents of the state said. Sites popular with domestic tourists include Taunggyi, the capital of Southern Shan state, Inlay lake, and Pintaya and Kalaw towns, they said.

Source birmane 11

Maungmagan is a village and beach located approximately 12 kilometers north-west of Dawei, the capital of Thaninthayi region. It is the second oldest beach established in Myanmar after Ngapali.

It is approximately 45-minutes drive away from Dawei. It was a popular beach destination in Myanmar until the establishment of Chaungtha which is much closer to Yangon.

“Starting last year, the beach has been packed with visitors around the country. Last week, visitors from Kachin State came with three buses. Some were from Yangon.

Not only local group tours or families but also foreign travelers visit the beach very often now as Yangon- Dawei road is improved. I think more people will be visiting the beach in the future,” a shopkeeper said.

Though the number of visitors has increased in Maungmagan, there are not many places to accommodate the visitors.

“The main problem is not enough rooms for the visitors especially during holidays. There are only ten bungalows on the beach. It will be much more convenient
(for the visitors) if there are enough hotels on the beach. Many restaurants are located along the beach” a local shop owner said.

Dawei Development Public Company is planning to build more hotels on the beach. Investors have also expressed their interest in hotel business at Maungmagan beach area.

Source birmane 11

This group of ladies is tasked with grinding of the bark of the fragrant thanaka, or sandalwood tree (Photo-EMG)

Come April, Myanmar celebrates the start of the traditional new year with Thingyan, or the Water Festival. The four-day festival, running from April 13 to 16, is a major Buddhist tradition that is observed annually across Southeast Asia. The festival involves water-splashing spree, exchanges of well wishes between the elderly and the young and family get-togethers. Buddhists believe water washes away bad luck and evil and ushers in prosperity and happiness.

The festival has somehow evolved over the years unceremoniously on the ground. Gangs of youths go on the rampage armed with water pistols, buckets and hoses, causing watery havoc. It’s a festival of fun, dance and wild music rife with booze and sleaze.

However, the Rakhine community of Yangon defies all the odds by preserving their cultural heritage for generations. They are celebrating Thingyan at its most traditional at the Rakhine Water Festival, which kicks off on April 14 for a three-day run at the Thuwanna Stadium in Thingangyun Township.

Dating their first kingdom of Dhanyawaddy in western Myanmar to 3325 BC, the Rakhine or Arakanese love music and literature and practiseTheravada Buddhism in much the same way as other major ethnic communities including the Kachin, Kayah, Karen, Chin, Barma, Mon and Shan.

The Rakhine are credited with inventing Thingyan.

A legend has it that in 568 BC, the Buddha visited Dhanyawaddy and bestowed his own Mahamuni image upon King Sandar Suriya. Blessed by the Buddha himself, the statue was considered holy and worshipped by locals who developed a practice of pouring perfumed lustral water on the idol and used the remainder in the bowls to splash each other for fun. Thingyan was born.


Thanaka powder is prepared in a grinding competition between three teams of Rakhine damsels (Photo-EMG)

Traditionally three events occur in the Rakhine Water Festival.

The first is the thanaka-making competition in which revelers take part in grinding the bark of the fragrant thanaka, or sandalwood tree. Thanaka is yellow facial powder that Myanmar women and children like to smear on their faces. Then, the powder is mixed in holy water to make liquid, which locals use to gently pour on the heads of Buddha images.

The water-splashing part of the festival takes place in Buddhist monasteries. Before that to happen, there’s a clean-up campaign at the temple on the new year’s eve, followed by a thanaka-producing chore done by a group of Rakhine ladies in a pavilion within the monastic grounds. The men entertain outside with music and dance.

The first day of Thingyan begins with a ceremony to bath Buddha images with liquid thanaka. A Buddhist sermon then follows. Only then, the locals switch into the automatic water-splashing mode as a good way of using up leftover liquid thanaka.

Given the Rakhine’s coastal origins, early celebrations involved a bamboo pavilion housing a big boat filled with water and adorned with gum kino flowers (locally known as Padauk), which are in full bloom in April.

The ladies did the splashing from beside the boat while the men enjoy music and dance outside the pavilion. Guys have fun pairing up with their favourite chosen ladies as they splash and dance.

The Rakhine Water Festival has been in practice exclusively in Rakhine State for generations. But since 2004, the festival has been organized in Yangon, initially in the city centre and eventually at its current venue with the goal of safeguarding the Rakhine cultural heritage that has all but disappeared.

For security reasons, the Rakhine Water Festival takes place at two different venues. The thanaka-grinding ceremony and the bathing of Buddha images are scheduled for the new year’s eve (April 13) in the Rakhine Religious Hall at the Shwedagon Pagoda. The splashing kicks off Thingyan on April 14 at the Thuwanna Stadium, Thingangyun Township of Yangon.

Source birmane 11

Inlay is famous for its unique peddle boats, floating market and beautiful scenery. It is located in the heart of Shan plateau.

The floating market in Inle Lake is popular among tourists and domestic visitors. But now the floating market in Ywama, in Nyaung Shwe township in southern Shan State is quickly disappearing, according to locals.

“The business is not good anymore. Because there are many souvenir shops and competitive selling occurs among the sellers. It is one of the reasons the floating market is nearly disappearing. Another thing is the water in the Inle Lake which is drying up gradually. Therefore, the shops moved to the land. I think these are the reasons why Inle floating market is fading,” Aung Kyaw Moe, general secretary of Myanmar Hoteliers Association, Taunggyi zone, said.

“The floating market sells regional products and souvenirs and it usually draw tourists’ attraction. Floating market came to its life since Inle has established.

Trading takes place on the water and it’s attracting local and foreign visitors,” he added.

The factors such as the climatic change in Myanmar, deposition of alluvial soil increasing, and deforestation caused less flow of water in the lake. Drop of water level in the lake affects the tourism industry of the region.

Source Birmane 11

Twenty hotels providing over 1,400 rooms will be built in Mandalay to meet growing demands for hotel rooms, according to Mandalay Region's Hotels and Tourism Department.

"The number of tourist arrivals kept increasing in Mandalay over the years, but we never have any hotel shortages before. At present, about 20 hotels are being built in Mandalay with permission from the authorities," said Myo Myint, head of hotels and tourism department (Mandalay Region).

He said the rise of hotel industry in Mandalay is due to the relaxation of restrictions on hotel construction licenses and a growing interest of businessmen in the hotel industry.

He added that some hotel projects were originally planned as housing projects but were allowed to change in accordance with regulations.

Tour guides say the city might not be able to cope with tourist demand when an influx of tourists arrives. At present, Mandalay has a total of 83 hotels, providing over 3500 rooms.

In 2013, Mandalay's tourist arrival rose in January, attracting over 22,000 visitors, but has been declining since February. The city received over 21,000 visitors in February and over 20,000 visitors in March.

Source Birmane 11

Les hôtels existants affichent complet tandis que la machine administrative est accusée de bloquer l’ouverture de nouveaux établissements.

Au retour d’un voyage en Birmanie les voyageurs sont unanimes. Il est souvent difficile de trouver un hébergement et les prix sont en hausse. Un représentant local des professionnels du tourisme confirme ces récits : "Les infrastructures touristiques sont très limitées et tous les hôtels sont complets, ce qui alimente la hausse des prix". Le pays compte actuellement de 787 hôtels et guest houses qui proposent un total de 28.291 chambres selon le site spécialisé TTR Weekly. Les investisseurs étrangers se pressent pour améliorer cette offre déficitaire et les projets en cours devraient ajouter plus de 6700 chambres d’après le ministère des Hôtels et du Tourisme. Ils doivent cependant s’armer de patience, car l’obtention des autorisations nécessaires constitue un chemin de croix non seulement ardu, mais aussi coûteux en matière de frais administratifs.

L’ouverture d’un établissement hôtelier en Birmanie est assujettie à tout un éventail de règles tant au niveau local que national. Les candidats doivent satisfaire aux critères sanitaires ainsi qu’aux règles de lutte contre l’incendie à l’échelon local avant de soumettre leur projet au ministère des Hôtels et du Tourisme dans la capitale Naypyitaw. En outre, la bénédiction des services archéologiques est requise notamment dans la région de Bagan réputée pour son patrimoine. Retards et difficultés peuvent survenir à chacune de ces étapes. À Bagan où le manque de chambres est criant, un hôtelier attend son autorisation d’ouverture depuis un an. Sous couvert d’anonymat il s’est épanché dans un journal local : "Le ministère devrait accélérer l’octroi des licences dans les régions déficitaires. Il y a actuellement un blocage".

Selon un rapport de l’Association des nations de l’Asie du Sud est (ASEAN) le secteur touristique est encore embryonnaire en Birmanie et le secteur hôtelier doit se développer à partir d’une base très limitée. En 2010 les revenus du tourisme ne comptaient que pour 0.2 % du produit national brut contre 6.8 % au Laos.

http://www.lepetitjournal.com/bangkok/birmanie-myanmar/en-bref/151119-birmanie-la-bureaucratie-etrangle-une-hotellerie-deja-saturee

Foreign tourists will soon be permitted to enter Myanmar through border trade centers in Kayin State, bordering Thailand, said Zaw Min, the chief minister for the state at the ASEAN Economic Forum held on May 19 in Hpa-an, its capital city.

“As a preparation for the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) in 2015, the foreign tourists will be allowed to enter the country through the newly opened border trade centers such as Mawtaung, Hteekhee, Myawady and Pharathonesu in the state,” he said.

Currently there are few foreign tourists who entered the country through the centers and only one-day trip is allowed.

“There is a bridge built across Thaung Rin River between Myanmar and Thailand. As much as I know, the number of foreign tourists entering the country through the border is not much now.

But opening like this will likely attract more of them. And Thailand has received a lot of tourists currently. The tourists are also interested in visiting Kayin,” said a Myanmar resident from Maesot, a town in western Thailand.

Source Birmane 11

Thai tourists have been in the top list of Asian tourists visiting Myanmar this year, according to official figures from the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism.

Over 250,000 foreign tourists visited the country from January to April, 44 per cent up from the previous year, the ministry said.

The Asian tourists took up 60 per cent of all foreign tourists with 37,000 Thai tourists. Japanese tourists took the second place with over 21,000 followed by South Koreans with over 18,000 visitors. The figures showed at least 16,000 Chinese tourists visited the country in the same period.

European tourists followed the Asians with 15,000 French, 13,000 British and 11,000 German during the period.

Visitors to Myanmar during January and February this year was in high number, March and April is a bit lower but still high compare to the same period of last year, said Aung Din, the managing director for Nature Lovers Company.

Myanmar’s annual tourism high season is from the end of September to the end of April and rainy season is regarded as low season.

The number of tourist arrivals has started going down since 2007 and sharply declined after the Cyclone Nargis hit the country in 2008.

Number of visitor was going up since 2010 due to the country’s reforms. The number of tourist arrivals hit one million in 2012, the first ever for the country.

Source birmane 11

Tourists visiting Myanmar are up by 30 percent this year according to the Minister of Hotels and Tourism.

Visitors are expected to reach 1.8 million by the end of 2013 with more arriving for longer stays, Minister Htay Aung told the Upper House session on Thursday.

“Tourism in Myanmar has showed a positive sign since 2001. Last year, 1.06 million tourists came to Myanmar. If we compare the figures to last year, you can see 30 per cent increase. Tourist arrivals are up in May due to longer oversea trips in addition to expanding oversea flight schedules and increasing numbers of chartered flight arrival. The arrival from neighbouring countries is up significantly,” the union minister said.

The changing rules and regulations of the visa system are encouraging more arrivals. The Minister expressed his hopes that such favourable conditions would see about a million more tourists visiting Myanmar in a couple of years.

“We need to develop infrastructure, supporting and providing services in line with the tourist increase. We have about 30,000 hotel rooms ready for the tourists. About 10,000 more rooms will be ready in the end of this year. The increasing number of rooms is not only in Yangon but also in other towns too,” the minister said.

The ministry is launching websites, showing the places to travel, keeping news and information counters in Yangon, Mandalay, Nay Pyi Taw and other well-known regions, allowing foreign and local investments to provide sufficient accommodation, according to the sources.

In 2012, tourist arrival to Myanmar exceeded one million for the first time. Tourist arrival between January and at the end of April 2013 were up 26 per cent (0.45 million) compared with the same period last year.

Yangon International Airport has received 0.25 million tourists in the same period mentioned which is a 44 percent increase compared with the same period.

Source birmane 11

The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism has allocated four areas for hotel zone expansion at Ngapali Beach in western Myanmar.

“I heard that the Minister of Hotels and Tourism submitted four areas for expansion of the Thandwe (Ngapali Beach) to the president when he visited Thandwe,” said Myat Moe, manager of the Bayview Hotel in Ngapali Beach.

“Those areas are in front of the Thandwe (Ngapali) Golf Resort, and those near Singaung village, Linnthar village, and Mawyone village.”

According to the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism, President Thein Sein gave instructions for the hotel zone expansion and met with hoteliers from Ngapali Beach during his visit to Thandwe. Five billion kyats have also been allocated for the hotel zone expansion.

Located in Rakhine State, Ngapali Beach is part of an unspoiled coastline and is a popular tourist destination. But with only 17 existing hotels, the area could face difficulty meeting room demand during the high season.

“The tourist season runs from October to April here. We receive many tourist arrivals after November. There are only about 750 hotel rooms in Ngapali Beach, and only about 1,500 guests can stay at these hotels,” said another Ngapali Beach hotelier, adding that zone expansion is inevitable given that there will not be enough rooms available if the tourist arrivals increase as expected.

The government has been promoting a number of sites to attract tourists to Rakhine State. As well as Ngapali Beach, these include Pearl Island, Thandwe, Sittwe, Rakhine Cultural Museum, Buddhist Museum, Shittaung Pagoda, Koethaung Pagoda, Mahamuni Pagoda, and Mrauk-U Museum.

Source 11